Gareth Southgate admitted his side were embarrassed by their 5-0 humbling at home to table-topping West Brom.
Boro kicked off the day in second place and just a point behind Albion but looked leagues apart by the end.
"We've had an embarrassing defeat," confessed the shell-shocked Boro boss. "I've learnt a lot about some people and it is better to know that now than later."
Albion took a controversial early lead as Chris Brunt drilled home a free-kick with Boro claiming they should have won the decision instead.
But there was no way back for Boro as Brunt chipped in a second on the half-hour and Youssouf Mulumbu headed a third before the break. In the second half Roman Bednar and Jerome Thomas sealed it strikes in the last five minutes.
Southgate added: "We didn't have the energy to get back into the game after their opening goal and we made some poor decisions along the way. As the game wore on you could see the confidence drain away. We got exactly what we deserved.
"I don't want to make excuses but goals change games and for the first one we should have had a free-kick but instead they get one and it is deflected in.
"And for the second our keeper has done well to come out and clear but it fell to one of their men and you can't legislate for that.
"Credit to West Brom because they are a good side and they deserved to win the game. They have hit us with a sledgehammer. It has been a wake-up call. We have to make sure we use it to our advantage. We have to make sure it hurts and we have to make sure we respond properly next week against Coventry."
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Yes, it was horrendous and the result only goes to highlight the problems. The bigger problem, however, is keeping hold of our best player - namely Johnson, he wont hang around if a premier club comes in and we look static in this league. The answer might be to change the manager but please dont forget that 95% of us wanted rid of Mclaren because of his drab view on how the game was played, personally I think Southgate will get the rest of this season and Gibson will then have to review the situation if we haven't managed promotion. Too many mistakes have been made over the last 2 years in the selling and buying arena and it'll take much longer than 8 games in to sort things out. we are still in a very good league position and shouldn't let 1 really bad performance cloud the situation. if we win the next 2 games, it'll all be forgotten and our hopes of promotion will come flooding back. WBA are probably the best team in this league but theres 2 automatic promotion slots .
Jesus, what a humiliating debacle. And we were keeping it respectable before this - staying ahead of the Toon, at least. While I agree with those saying, "Bring back Mclaren" (or, I might suggest, El Tel), doesn't that make a nonsense of the oh-so-common knee-jerk 'Sack the gaffer' calls, and in this case, the call to sack Southgate ? I have always disliked, & disagreed with this short-sighted and unrealistic take on football. Every team is going to lose sometimes, and occasionally lose badly. If you want long-term success, you absolutely need consistency. Sacking the manager whenever your team's 'Not winning', 'Not winning enough', or even 'Not in the Champions league this year' is moronic, and always will be.
Now, Mclaren & Venables... THERE's a team looking like long-term success and Premiership longevity. And maybe even some more silverware. You never know...
Two sides at the top of the table and with Boro's home advantage this should have been a thrilling encounter. The sides this season must be pretty equal to be where they are in the league so what went wrong I suggest is in the Boro game plan, team selection and the fact that Albion have a much better management team than Boro. Southgate puts this loss down to the team, I suggest think it is firmly at Southgate's door!
Bringing back Mclaren would be an ideal solution, we where better off under him, and had he stayed we would not be in this mess now, progress would have been made!!
To be honest the board have southgate over a barrel, sell all the players that would have got us back up and leave him to take the blame for it, he doesn't really seem to have a clue, this result shopuld never have happened, god knows how many goals a decent PL side would paste past us now, this is getting a bit embarrasing, the situation needs addressing asap, the players should not be paid this week they should be more ashamed then ever before IMHO, best get used to this league cos where gonna be lucky to stay in it
i was at the game, we were attrocious, no co-ordination at the back, no leadership in the midfield and no focal point up front, fans were leaving after 30 mins, seats around the ground didnt get occupied after the break. its time for Gareth to admit defeat and move on as this set of players obviously have no faith in him. Bring back Mclaren?
Getting really bored with Southgate saying "we've learnt a lot by getting battered" Roberto Di Matteo has been in the job 5 minutes & already makes Gareth look like a beginner....time for a change.
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